Last week, we had two teacher workdays on Thursday and Friday, followed by a Columbus Day holiday on Monday.   It meant five days of no school!

Mike took the kids (all three!) down to visit his parents in southwest VA, while I stayed home to enjoy a staycation by myself.  It was blissful to have a quiet and empty house and the freedom to do whatever I wanted.   I spent a lot of time just doing chores like laundry and paying bills but  I didn’t mind because there was no one to distract, interrupt or undo the work I was doing.  I also enjoyed the opportunity to be spontaneous and leave the house whenever I wanted without lining up kid care or having kids hanging on me.   I baked bread.  I went for a run!   I went to the movies and saw Whip It (loved it!).  I even got my hair cut:

It was a little strange to be home all by myself for so long.  And I did miss the kids and Mike.   One of the challenges I faced being home alone was not having someone who could help to when I needed to get to a hard to reach place.    Namely, I had a cut on the bottom of my toe and I couldn’t figure out if there was something in it or not.   What do single people do in these circumstances?   I did the only reasonable thing I could think of.  I took a picture and zoomed in:

Yes, I’m a dork, I know.  After a couple of days of “me time” I was ready to be around people.   I decided to drive south and visit my friends who just had a baby girl.

Isn’t she precious?   Only a week old.   It was so fun to hang with them and soak up the newborn baby bliss … especially since I didn’t have to worry about being up all night and still functioning during the day with a toddler.    Here’s some more pictures  — click to magnify the cuteness:

It was great to see and spend time with  M, R, Z and M – I love you guys!

While I was enjoying peace and quiet, this is what my crazies were up to:

They had a great time in the country with lots of corn, cows, fishin’, and lovin’ from Grandma & Grandpa.

We finally reunited Monday evening and it was wonderful to have my wild and wacky brood restored to me.   Even if they brought back enough chaos and noise to fill a weekend of quiet — my staycation helped me love it all the more.

Tags: around the house, grandparents, trips, vacation